Ohio bill would compensate women held captive by Ariel Castro

By Kim Palmer

CLEVELAND (Reuters) - A bill that would compensate three women held captive for nearly a decade in Ariel Castro's home in Cleveland came one step closer to becoming law on Wednesday.

The measure was introduced a month after Michelle Knight, Gina DeJesus, Amanda Berry and a six-year-old daughter Castro fathered with Berry made their way to freedom in May from the home where the women were imprisoned, raped and beaten. It would provide each of the women with $25,000 annually for each year they suffered in Castro's home.

On Wednesday, the bi-partisan House Bill 197 or the Survivors Abduction Act passed its committee vote with three dissenting votes from Republicans on the committee. It will now be considered by the full Ohio House of Representatives.

If the bill becomes law, Knight would get $275,000 for her 11 years of captivity, Berry $250,000 for her 10 years of imprisonment and DeJesus $225,000. The money would come from the Ohio Court of Claims' crime victims fund.

In addition, the law would require Cleveland State University to provide five years schooling plus room and board, all free of charge. They would also receive Medicaid funds for life at the discretion of the Governor.

Separately, a fund soliciting private donations that was set up after the captives were freed has reached $1.4 million from more than 10,000 donors.

Castro, 53, was found dead in his prison cell one month after he was sentenced to life in prison without parole plus 1,000 years for kidnapping, raping and beating the women.

An autopsy report released last week called his death a suicide but a prison report the same week questioned whether Castro, who was found with his pants and underwear around his ankles, had not accidentally killed himself during an act of auto-erotic asphyxiation.

The bill's co-sponsor Cheryl Grossman, a Republican from Grove City near Columbus, told Reuters that the bill applies only to survivors held for eight years or more.

The Ohio Victims of Crime fund carries a balance of $26 million dollars on average and is funded by OVI reinstatement and court fees and a federal victims compensation program, Grossman said.

Co-sponsor John Barnes Jr., a Democrat from Cleveland, represents a district east of the Castro home and introduced the bill in June.

"I was outraged and thought of what, if anything, can be done to help these women on their long road of recovery," Barnes told Reuters.

Sponsors of the bill hope to rename it the Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus Survivors of Abduction Act after it passes both legislative houses.

(Editing by Barbara Goldberg, David Bailey and Ken Wills)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ohio-bill-compensate-women-held-captive-ariel-castro-023341391.html
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Hillary Clinton Accepts First Founder's Award at Elton John AIDS Benefit

Carlo Allegri/Invision/AP

Hillary Clinton at Tuesday night's event

Hillary Clinton accepted the Elton John AIDS Foundation's first-ever Founder's Award at the organization's annual benefit in New York on Tuesday night.

Although she was honored by the accolade, Clinton echoed a theme expressed by many of the stars in attendance: that there's much more work to be done to combat the disease.

PHOTOS: Hillary Clinton, Ron Perelman Honored at 2013 Elton John AIDS Foundation Benefit

"We still have so far to go," the former secretary of state said in her acceptance speech. "There are so many challenges that confront us. If we are to continue to build on the progress, and yes, there has been progress, then we have to continue to advocate and demand for governments, international organizations, foundations, all of us, to be persistent…and ensure that we don't falter."

"If we're going to beat AIDS, we have to reach out to everyone," she added.

Elton John also received an award at Tuesday's gala, from the Harvard AIDS Initiative.

"I really hope that all of you will join me in being equally stubborn when it comes to ending AIDS because that is what will be required to end this epidemic," he told the well-heeled crowd at Cipriani Wall Street in lower Manhattan. "We're going to have to stubbornly insist on full funding for all proven methods of preventing HIV infection…Treatment for everyone. Treatment for all…We're going to have to keep yelling and screaming about the way our country treats racial and sexual minorities and, of course, the poor. We're going to have to be downright stubborn, not just this year, not next year, not the next, but for many years to come."

Indeed, John vowed to be stubborn about AIDS for the next 20 years if necessary, but he said he doesn't think it will take that long to achieve an AIDS-free generation and world.

Nevertheless, John added, "We have so much more work to do and we'll be there until the bitter end."

STORY: Hillary Clinton to Get Elton John Foundation Honor

Other honorees at the event, which raised $3.45 million, included Food Network star Sandra Lee, John's longtime agent Howard Rose and mogul Ron Perelman, who prompted cheers from the crowd when he referred to Clinton as "the next president of the United States." Clinton looked nonchalant when the camera cut to her, but after Perelman continued to sing her praises and said the highly rumored candidate has his vote, Clinton could be seen mouthing "Oh my God," as if she couldn't believe all of the attention.

Matt Lauer was a last-minute substitute host at the event after Anderson Cooper had to go to Washington to cover the debt-ceiling crisis, which Lauer joked "sounded like a lame-ass excuse."

Earlier, The Hollywood Reporter asked Lauer what the entertainment industry could do to continue to raise awareness of AIDS and combat the disease.

"Talk, talk, talk, spread the word, get out there, come to events like this and raise money," Lauer said. "I mean, when you stop and think about what Elton has done in 20 years…a lot of it is something you can't put a price tag on, it's just a discussion and getting out there and putting his reputation on line and spreading the word that way."

STORY: Elton John to Pen Book on AIDS Epidemic

Tony-winning actress Judith Light echoed Lauer's call for a continued dialogue on the issue.

"We did and we do so much in terms of the awareness, and I don't think it's just the entertainment industry that has to do something, I think it's about those of us who are committed to this issue and have been committed to this issue for a long time, talking to other people and finding ways, just like Elton has, to make it a prominent issue again, to say to people, 'This is not over,' " she said.

The former Who's the Boss star, who's performed on Broadway for the past few years, told us that she recently starred in a pilot for Amazon, making her just the latest actor to join the Internet revolution.

Meanwhile, fellow Broadway alum Jeremy Jordan, who left his starring role in Newsies after he joined the second-season cast of NBC's now-canceled Smash, said he misses the stage and hopes to "come back as soon as possible." In fact, he's doing a weeklong Stephen Sondheim show in November called A Bed and a Chair.

"It's only a week, and it's not Broadway, but it will be nice to come back to New York for a hot sec," he said.

Other celebs in attendance included Billy Joel, Alec Baldwin, Allison Williams, Courtney Love, Lisa Marie Presley and rock band Heart, who performed at the end of the night.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/thr/television/~3/SA14Hfr146c/story01.htm
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Abbott surprises with huge dividend boost, shares jump

By Ransdell Pierson

(Reuters) - Abbott Laboratories reported higher-than-expected quarterly earnings on Wednesday, helped by strong demand for its diagnostics, and surprised investors with a dividend increase of more than 50 percent.

Lower taxes and cost-cutting also helped Abbott beat earnings forecasts, analysts said. The company's shares jumped 5 percent in afternoon trading to $35.42.

"The 57 percent dividend hike is the big news," Jefferies analyst Jeffrey Holford said in a research note. Abbott said it would boost its dividend to 22 cents per share from 14 cents, starting with the February 15 payment.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Glenn Novarro said the dividend's annual yield will grow to 2.7 percent and will likely attract investors following recent declines in Abbott shares related to worries about weakness in its nutritional products business.

"The dividend was a double surprise because of its size and because the company had not signaled they would raise it in the near term," Novarro said.

Abbott, which spun off its branded prescription drugs business in January into a separate publicly traded company called AbbVie Inc, reported third-quarter earnings from continuing operations of $773 million, or 49 cents per share. That compared with $339 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier, when Abbott incurred big expenses for cost-reduction programs and other initiatives.

Excluding special items, Abbott earned 55 cents per share. Analysts, on average, had expected 51 cents.

Overall revenue rose 2 percent to $5.37 billion, a bit shy of Wall Street forecasts for $5.39 billion. Sales would have risen 4.3 percent if not for the stronger dollar, which lowers the value of sales in overseas markets.

Despite beating earnings forecasts, Abbott left its full-year profit view unchanged at $1.98 to $2.04 per share, excluding special items.

"They're guiding conservatively given the current general macroeconomic situation," said Edward Jones analyst Jeff Windau, who has a "buy" rating on Abbott shares. "The quarter highlights overall strength of the company, including its strong medical device business and its international presence, including growth in emerging markets."

Sales of nutritional products, including Similac infant formula and Ensure beverages for adults, rose 1.9 percent to $1.64 billion in the third quarter. That represents a slowdown from growth of 7.9 percent in the second quarter.

In August Abbott recalled batches of its milk formula brands in China and Vietnam due to fears that protein concentrate, an ingredient provided by an outside supplier, was contaminated.

Although no contamination was ever found, Abbott on Wednesday said the disruption reduced sales of its nutritional products for infants and children by $90 million in the third quarter. It said sales of the products will continue to be hurt through the first half of 2014.

"But Abbott signaled that the nutritional issues will be short-term and that they are investing there (in Asia) to mitigate them," said Tim Nelson, a healthcare analyst with Nuveen Asset Management.

Sales of Abbott diagnostics rose 8 percent to $1.13 billion, while sales of its medical devices climbed 1.9 percent to $1.34 billion. But sales of its generic prescription drugs, which it calls established pharmaceuticals, fell 2.9 percent to $1.24 billion.

(Reporting by Ransdell Pierson; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick and John Wallace)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/abbott-beats-forecasts-helped-cost-cuts-low-taxes-120848451--finance.html
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How a Lost Boy Used Google Earth to Find His Way Home After 25 Years

Last year, we heard the amazing story of Saroo Brierley, the Indian "lost child" who used Google Earth to find his way home after 25 years. This stirring video produced by Google features Brierley telling the story in his own words. It's pretty crushing.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/dV5a6VGcSD0/how-a-lost-boy-used-google-earth-to-find-his-way-home-a-1446315507
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This Insane Six-Axis 3D Printer Even Works On Curved Surfaces

Still upset about breaking the handle on your favorite mug? A 3D printer can make it as good as new, and thanks to researchers at the University of Southern California, the process is even easier now since they've developed a printer that can build directly on curved surfaces.

The most common 3D printer design on the market has a print head with just three axis of movement, which means the printer and the table have to remain perfectly flat and stable at all times. But with six axis of movement, the print head on this creation works on angled and even curved surfaces, meaning a replacement handle could be printed directly onto a mug.

The catch, of course, is that the printer involves far more components than the models offered by companies like Makerbot, which means they'll be expensive to build and maintain. So if and when they're perfected and made ready for primetime, they'll likely only be affordable to companies in need of rapid prototyping systems, or those who intend to turn an immediate profit. In other words, don't expect Makerbot to release a six-axis model anytime soon. [Fabbaloo via Boing Boing]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/this-insane-six-axis-3d-printer-even-works-on-curved-su-1445522451
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Voxer Adds A Web Version To Its Push-To-Talk Business Messaging ...

Voxer, the mobile messaging app that started out 2013 with a little notoriety (thanks to Facebook cutting off its API access), is today taking the next step in its transformation into a paid enterprise push-to-talk and chat product: the company is launching Voxer for Web, a version of the service that links up the company’s paid Voxer for Business iOS and Android apps with a desktop version.

Priced as part of the company’s bigger Voxer for Business service — rates for that are currently $4.95/user/month but are going up to $9.95/user/month January 1, 2014 for sign-ups after then — the web version will help Voxer transform from one that can be used as a person-to-person communication system into a more unified product, to also include those who are in a stationary place and need to communicate with many workers at once. Think dispatchers for taxi or other delivery servicees. (As for the price hike, Voxer also says that for those who sign up before the end of December, they will get the lower pricing option applied until October 2014).

Voxer for Web essentially takes several of the features from the company’s existing mobile apps for business users and extends them to desktop computers, with the ability to push live and messaged audio, sending images and text messages and chat. Added features include the ability to have multiple chats open on a single screen; and voice messages, texts and images sent from a whole team. Users can also listen to multiple chats in live mode — similar to what you get in lower-quality existing dispatch services.

Itamar Kandel, COO at Voxer, tells us that the company has gone for a web version in response to requests from businesses. “We’ve heard from customers across a variety of industries that need to enable their mobile workforces and desk workers to collaborate,” he said. “Voxer for Web addresses this by providing a unified experience while also including unique features that will enable administrators and dispatchers to monitor multiple conversations, people or teams – all from a computer.”

He notes that the idea is that this not just signifies an increase in functionality, but also in terms of the kinds of businesses that Voxer is targeting. “Our vision is that mobile will be for the moving workforce, whereas desktop is ideal for businesses that have large workforces that vox and need to communicate quickly with a central person, such as a dispatcher,” he said. “By adding the ability to send messages from a desktop, we have increased our addressable market tenfold, and can now service the communication needs of not just mobile employees but also the needs of the entire organization. Voxer for Web will serve as the connective tissue between the mobile and stationary workforces.”

Voxer’s consumer product — which stands apart from other messaging apps like WhatsApp for being primarily focused on voice-based exchanges — has had tens of millions of downloads, with a particular surge in 2012, the same year it raised a large $30 million round.

The company today is not revealing how many enterprises have signed up to Voxer for Business (we’re asking). It’s unlikely to be a volume play like the consumer product, but it represents a couple of different and important evolutions for the company. The first and most obvious is the startup’s move to targeting a paying audience with its products, and along with that a push to make Voxer into an enterprise-class company, complete with stronger service levels, security and a roll-out of features that are needed and demanded by those paying customers.

The second is how Voxer has become, yes, one of the many to tap into the bigger consumerization trend, taking a product originally created for average consumers and applying it to the enterprise market — but it is one with a twist. Voxer is also a sign of how in fact even consumer products can come out of enterprise beginnings: founder Tom Katis apparently first came up with the idea out of his own experiences as a communications specialist with the military in Afghanistan.

In making the switch to business users, Voxer is not exactly entering unchartered territory. It competes against those services also with origins in consumer apps from the likes of Sprint, with its Nextel push-to-talk service.

Perhaps more importantly for Voxer, there are a number of other messaging services and dispatch messaging services that are specifically aiming at the same market it is. Take taxi services, one of Voxer’s key targets. (In a press release announcing the new web version, it quotes Tom Brennan, owner of Future Cab: “Voxer has played a central role in my company, allowing my team to constantly be in touch with each other and with me.” He lives in Virginia Beach and operates a service in New York from there, apparently.) There are dozens of companies out there already, some working on legacy systems that require special in-car equipment; but many more riding on the explosion of mobile networks and mobile handsets to run services. Competitors include T Dispatch and PC Dispatch (which I’m guessing are close rivals), Digital Dispatch, TaxiCaller, AutoCab and many more.

Whether Voxer’s additional functionality, letting users send pictures and more, its strong brand recognition on the consumer side, and Katis’ connections to VC money and subsequent networks, will be enough to set it apart and win new customers, will be worth watching.

Voxer has raised some $30 million to date with backers including Institutional Venture Partners, Intel Capital, SV Angel, TC-founder Michael Arrington’s CrunchFund, Chris Dixon, Roger McNamee, Windcrest Partners and Webb Investment Network.

Source: http://techcrunch.com/2013/10/14/voxer-adds-a-web-version-to-its-push-to-talk-business-messaging-app/
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Solar Decathlon's Latest Designs for Affordable ... - AOL Real Estate

By


CNBC
 

| Posted Oct 15th 2013 10:13AM

Updated Oct 15th 2013 12:01PM

Department of Energy/Flickr

By Diana Olick

Nineteen collegiate teams are in a tough competition to see who can design, build and operate the most energy efficient and affordable home of the future. From solar technology, to sustainable building materials, to futuristic heating and cooling systems, these teams are using the latest innovations from companies across the globe, while pushing the envelope of energy efficiency with their own new ideas. The homes are fully built and decorated, and the student teams are performing all kinds of tasks within the homes, from washing clothes to boiling water; whichever team does it all best wins.

The competition, which is called the Solar Decathlon, started in 2002, occurring biannually in Washington, D.C. This year, the Department of Energy-sponsored event moved to Irvine, Calif., to bring its homes to a wider audience. Irvine is the perfect place, as new construction is booming again after a lull during the housing recession. A big emphasis in this year's competition is affordability.

The homebuilders are watching, especially Lennar, which has a major development going on near the site of this year's competition. Lennar is building homes with solar standard.
Below are some highlights of this year's decathlon.

SOLAR DECATHLON HOMES:

• 
  

  House: Delta T-90

  
  
  

  Cost: $168,385

  
  
  

  Team website: nusd2013.org

  
  
  

  The Delta T-90 house was built at the Huntington Homes factory in Vermont. Norwich University is the first team in the history of the decathlon to partner with a home builder, which means in the future the homes could be made commercially available.

  
  
  

  The DOE judges estimate this home would cost $168,385. Along with two others, the Delta T-90 is a winner in the competition's affordability category.

  
  
  

  The house uses the "Big Ass Fans" brand and a smart e-monitor system, allowing homeowners to stay informed about their home's power usage and production.

  
  
  

  The "Big Ass Fan" helps maintain a comfortable 70-degree temperature inside when the outside temperature is below 20 degrees.

  
  
  

  Five teams competing in the decathlon use the "Big Ass Fans" brand.

  
  
  Norwich University
  
• 
  House: Start.Home
  
  Cost: $234,092
  
  Team website: solardecathlon.stanford.edu

  The Start.home is built around a core: like the engine of car, it runs the home. Designed to be low cost and efficient, the core can be shipped to home builders as a self-contained unit, so they can build their own custom home around it.

  The house features energy efficient appliances from General Electric and the roof is lined with energy efficient ceiling material developed by DuPont. Homeowners can control and monitor energy consumption using an Apple iPad.

  Stanford students also developed a proprietary track pad "home switch," to control electrical outlets and lights with the swipe of a finger.

  
  Stanford University
  
• 
  House: DALE
  
  Cost: $274,263
  
  Team website: meetdale.com

  The Southern California Institute of Architecture and the California Institute of Technology came together to create the DALE house, which splits in half to triple its living area.

  Sliding on rails like train tracks, the house expands from 600 to 18,000 square feet, opening up to make the most of California's sunny climate.

  Inside the home, the walls move to maximize or minimize different living areas, depending on what the homeowner is doing.

  
  SCI-Arc and Caltech
  
• 
  House: UrbanEden
  
  Cost: $350,686
  
  Team website: urbaneden.uncc.edu

  The cement used by UNC-Charlotte to make this house is generating a lot of buzz. The geopolymer cement concrete is made up of fly ash, which is a waste byproduct of coal-burning power plants.

  This entirely new type of cement is far more environmentally friendly than traditional Portland cement, which contributes 5 percent to 8 percent of worldwide carbon dioxide emissions. The team behind this home estimates their new cement reduces the home's carbon footprint by 90 percent.

  The other unique feature of this home is its use of outdoor space. The walls move to turn the living room into a bedroom and transform the outdoor deck into a living area.

  The deck is lined with plants—a different variety for each room: Outside the living room are flowers, by the kitchen are edibles and alongside the bedroom are thicker varieties for more privacy.

  
  The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
  
• 
  Home: Harvest
  
  Cost: $280,952
  
  Team website: www.teamcapitoldc.org

  The Catholic University of America, George Washington University and American University joined forces as Team Capitol DC to build this home, which features sliding blinds along the front. Strips of metal called "lulvers" adjust, opening or closing to maximize energy from the sun's rays.

  Each blind has a Flexinol wire built in, a heat-sensitive black wire which expands or contracts to open or close the blinds automatically at certain temperatures. Right now the system is set to close the blinds at a comfortable room temperature of 75 to 85 degrees.

  Like all the homes here, The Harvest House is entirely solar powered with energy efficient appliances and a small physical footprint.

  
  Team Capitol DC
  
• 
  

  House: The Phoenix

  
  
  

  Cost: $248,423

  
  
  

  Team website: sd2013.teamkentuckiana.org

  
  
  

  Team Kentuckiana—the University of Louisville, Ball State University and University of Kentucky—designed the Phoenix House with victims of natural disasters in mind. It is constructed with a roof that easily pops back into shape after it is demolished.

  
  
  

  The bathroom doubles as a safe room for a homeowner to take shelter, with a strong metal outside door and shatter-proof window.

  
  
  

  In the kitchen, the table collapses down and in the bedrooms, like many of these energy-efficient homes, Murphy beds maximize space and minimize energy needs.

  
  
  

  For a complete list of all the Solar Decathlon Teams competing this year, click here.

  
  
  Team Kentuckiana
  

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Source: http://realestate.aol.com/blog/2013/10/15/2013-solar-decathlons-latest-designs/
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